


A Different First Meeting WITH DOGS!

by natigail



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Alternate Universe - Dogs, Dogs, First Kiss, Fluff, Laughter, M/M, One Shot, Posting Every Day In August, Rain, The boys are wearing outfits from the dog calendar video too, Wordcount: 5.000-10.000
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-02
Updated: 2018-08-02
Packaged: 2019-06-20 18:35:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15540462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/natigail/pseuds/natigail
Summary: I feel like they have fallen in love…They have…





	A Different First Meeting WITH DOGS!

**Author's Note:**

> The dogs are based on and named after the real dogs from [the dog calendar video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aYSLP8Z7ms&list=UUHUE4ypXKp7ZkmdWbGJNgJg). I have had a plan to write this one shot since that video came out and it only took me nine months. But enjoy!

It was all a coincidence really. Phil was working late and he had forgotten to get up and lock the front door. Dan had been rushing home only to be caught by a genuine cloudburst and have to seek shelter.

Appropriately, that place was called Lester’s Shelter for Dogs.

Dan stumbled through the door clanging it shut behind him with a force that startled Phil. Dan wasn’t even paying attention to his surroundings yet. He was too busy battling with the adorable but mostly unstable umbrella he had borrowed from costumes. It was more of a prop than a functioning umbrella. He was getting water all over the floor as he battled to close it.

Phil had been working on updating the website with the photos of the shelter’s two new arrivals when a man had bolted through the door. A quick glance at the clock confirmed that the shop had closed ten minutes ago and Phil was about to open his mouth and politely tell that to the stranger when the words caught in his throat.

The stranger was a tall, young man with curly hair. He was struggling to close a see-through umbrella while wearing the brightest pink raincoat Phil had ever seen in his life. Phil took pity on the guy and decided not send him packing just yet. Based on the man’s drenched appearance as well as the loud thrum of rain against the roof, Phil reasoned that it was nicer to let him get his bearings. Phil was the one who hadn’t locked the door come closing time after all.

Dan finally managed to snap the umbrella together and let out an excited cry of victory. Someone chuckled and Dan finally looked up to see a man behind the counter. Dan’s grip on the umbrella almost faltered as he locked eyes with the employee of the place he had sought refuge in.

He was wearing a flower crown of sunflowers on his head for starters and the flowers matched the colour of his shirt. Even from behind the desk, Dan could easily make out the green dungarees, which oddly seemed to tie the look together. The man looked like a flower and his eyes sparkled like stars when he was laughing. Dan didn’t like sunflowers but he was ready to possibly reconsider it when they were resting upon the head of a handsome stranger.

“Sorry,” Dan rushed to say. “I didn’t mean to come in here and shake water all over your floor.”

“Don’t worry about it,” “Phil said with a smile. “Whenever I come back from a walk with any of the dogs shake out their fur here too, so it’s really nothing out of the ordinary.”

Dan wasn’t sure if he should be offended or not to be compared to a dog but with the smile the stranger sent him, he just smiled back. Dan looked around and took in the place he had walked into. It looked like an animal shelter. Instantly, Dan perked up and tried to see if he could sense any dogs near. His friends had often called him out on his dog brooding but he had never done anything about it.

“Hi, I’m Phil. I can help you with anything?” Phil asked to the half-drenched man who was looking around like he had walked through a different dimension.

“Dan,” Dan introduced himself. “Do you have dogs here?”

Phil couldn’t help it; he just started giggling and reached up to cover his mouth as he pointed to the sign on his desk.

Dan hung his head and scoffed one of his white sneakers across the damp floor. “Alright, stupid question.”

“A bit,” Phil admitted but his tone was still friendly and encouraging. He put his hands up to his mouth and let out a whistle. Several dog barks could be heard from the back and Dan’s heart soared.

Soon after followed the telltale pitter-patter of paws as an adorable Corgi came through the door on his own accord.

“Hello,” Dan cooed and he was instantly crouched down and beaconing the adorable sweater clad dog.

“That’s my dog, Rupert,” Phil explained and his heart clenched a little when he saw how Dan’s whole face lit up and his voice turned unexplainably soft. Dan’s hands slowly stroked down Rupert’s body and the dog happily wagged his tail while looking between Dan and Phil.

“Are you looking to adopt one?” Phil asked and he hoped his voice wasn’t letting on just how much his heart cooed at the sight of Dan and Rupert. Phil’s corgi was a bit of an attention seeker and he would pretty much approach whoever called out for him but Phil still maintained that Rupert was an excellent judge of character and he seemed to always know which humans to approach when he was out on a walk.

Dan pondered it. He had wanted to get a dog but he had just kept putting it off because he didn’t know whether or not he was ready. Would anyone ever be ready? There was always a reason as to why he wasn’t ready at any particular time but sometimes you just had to take the plunge.

“I guess?” Dan said hesitantly.

Phil should have been kicking him out. It was past closing time and he should be getting ready for his evening routine with the dogs but he wanted to see the look on Dan’s face when he met all the other dogs. There was something about the way that Dan’s face scrunched up that did something funny to Phil’s chest.

He was used to seeing people coo and smile at the dogs. After all, most humans did that, at least the ones who walked in here, but there was something with the way that Dan held himself and how his tone turned so gentle without tipping over to being degrading or in baby voice.

When Dan finally looked up at Phil again, he was taken aback but the fond expression on his face. Dan reluctantly straightened himself and moved away from Rupert as he chanced another look at Phil. He had expected Phil’s eyes to stay on the corgi but instead they followed Dan.

Dan started opening his pink raincoat. It was another brilliant borrowed item from the costume department. His jean jacket wouldn’t have offered much protection against the rain, so he had decided to leave it in the dressing room and throwing on this one instead but right now he wanted wet raincoat off his body.

As Dan pulled away the clingy and wet fabric with difficulty, Phil got another surprise.

Dan was wearing tight white pants, a white shirt that seemed to be shaped to his body type and red suspenders.

Phil’s wonder must have showed on his face because Dan chuckled and looked down at himself while wearing a hopeless look.

“I’m coming straight from rehearsal. We’re doing an original play and I swear the head of the costume department has a thing for suspenders,” Dan explained.

“It looks good on you,” Phil said without meaning too and he wanted to slap his hands over his mouth.

Both boys looked away from each other, and they felt equally flustered.

“If we’re discussing styles, I have to ask, do you normally wear a flower crown? I don’t really like sunflowers but they look nice on you,” Dan said before he lost his touch.

Phil faltered and looked confused before bringing up his hands to his hair and pulling down the flower crown.

“Err… no,” Phil answered. “I actually forgot I had it on. I was taking photos of our newest arrivals and they kept running off, so I ended up deciding that it would be better if I just held them up. But of course, then I would be in the photo too, so the flower crown was an aesthetic choice.”

All the way through Phil’s adorable ramble, Dan’s smile just grew wider and wider.

“Aesthetic choice?” Dan asked in a teasing voice.

“Don’t ridicule me until you see the photos,” Phil said and reached over to retrieve his camera. He should be showing Dan the dogs up for adoption but he just couldn’t help himself. He was proud of the photos he had taken.

Dan was surprised as Phil pushed a camera into his hands and turned it back on. Dan held onto it carefully and tried not to let any of the drops falling from his hair fall onto the camera.

Dan’s heart might have soared just a tiny bit when he saw Phil holding up two golden furred puppies and smiling like a bright sun himself. The sunflower crown, the bright yellow T-shirt and the green overalls all somehow worked. The lighting was spot on and despite Phil clearly working with uncooperative puppies who would rather lick his hand he had gotten a couple of really nice shots of them.

“Those are really good. And the puppies look adorable,” Dan said and handed back the camera carefully.

“They were dropped here because their mother had given birth to like twelve puppies and the dog’s owner couldn’t find homes for these last two. So now I will. It won’t be difficult. Puppies are understandably quite popular,” Phil said. “What kind of dog are you looking for? A puppy?”

Dan hadn’t thought about it. Like at all.

“Who do you have that need home?” he asked Phil.

The question took Phil by surprise. Looking at Dan in his all white outfit with the red suspenders and the mention of rehearsal, he did not picture Dan as the type who would want to take the dog most in need of a home.

“It depends on how much experience you have with dogs,” Phil said.

“My family have had dogs growing up. Right now, they have a terrier named Colin who is a rescue. He has the best temperament. He is just such a chill dog. He’ll come and lie on the back on the sofa when you’re reading and he always seems to sense when you’re in need of a little dog affections,” Dan replied and rambled a little more than he had intended about Colin.

Phil smiled. He loved when people got as excited about dogs as he was. It made everything more exciting and if they were dog enthusiasts then he could usually count on them being able to actually take care of a dog.

“If it’s your first dog by yourself, maybe it would be ideal to start with a bit of an older dog. And those are the ones I have more trouble finding homes for. Want to come back and take a look?” he asked.

“Yes,” Dan said without any hesitation whatsoever and his enthusiasm made Phil crack a little smile.

“Follow me,” Phil told him and both Dan and Rupert followed Phil through the door out to the back with the big playpen.

The dogs would stay in their own crates overnight to ensure that they could get a proper night’s sleep without being bothered or woken up by some of the other dogs. The only dogs that did not sleep in their own individual crate was the two Chihuahuas who had been handed in together and they couldn’t bear to leave each other’s sides and then the two new Golden Retriever mix puppies also shared a space.

Phil would always come to feed the dogs their dinner right after closing time and then usually take them for a walk around the block to do their business. Even the dogs that had not been in Phil’s care for very long had quickly figured out the schedule and they happily barked as they saw him approach.

“How many dogs do you have at the moment?” Dan asked as they approached the crates and the rather large playpen.

“Twelve with our new two puppers. From the time I put the dogs up on the website, it usually only takes a week or two before I manage to find a suitable owner to them. The Miniature Dachshund and the Dalmatian have reservations on them already from several people who would like to see them. Oh, do you mind if I feed them first before you have a look?” Phil asked.

“No, of course not.”

“Good. It’s just that I usually feed them at this time and some of them will definitely be cranky if they are delayed their food. I want you to see them in their best light. I’m sure we can find a good one for you.”

Dan smiled and stayed by the edge of the playpen as Phil let himself into it. The crates were lining the walls of the fenced in area and Phil set about letting the some of the dogs out. Dan saw Miniture Daschund and the Dalmatian that Phil had talked about being let out first.

“That’s Bertie,” Phil told him while pointing at the little guy, “And that’s Indica. But like I said, you’d have to get in the back of the line for the two of them.”

It was a little comical to see the tall and slender spotted Dalmatian stand next to the little longhaired sausage dog. Next Phil let out two Chihauahas who shared a crate and they kept leaning into each other and shaking slightly.

“Rocco and Indie were found in a home with an old lady who was unable to care for them anymore. They ended up here because despite her dementia the old woman would not let anyone near the two of them unless she was promised that they would not be separated. They’re much more difficult to find homes to as a consequence and they’ve been with me a couple of months now.”

The brown Chihuahua was watching Dan carefully while the white one was busy glancing around the playpen.

“I think two dogs might be a bit much for me,” Dan confessed.

“Oh, I know. I wasn’t suggesting you take them,” Phil said and shot him a smile. “I just wanted to properly introduce you.”

Next Phil fetched a slender greyhound called Winston who seemed a little nervous with the way he pulled his ears back. Phil let out a black small dog with a short snout called Rudie and a huge white fluff ball of a dog called Skylar that ignored Phil entirely to run over to Dan and bark in his face.

“Skylar likes you,” Phil commented.

“Hello,” Dan said and reached down to pet the dog.

Some of the crates could be opened on either side and Phil reached over to open the back of the one containing the golden puppies that Dan had seen in the photos, which immediately tumbled out and went straight to Rupert who had planted himself by Dan’s side.

“Those two are not quite ready to socialise in the big pen yet,” Phil explained. “None of the current dogs have bad tempers, which makes everything easier but you have to be careful with small puppies anyway.”

Phil saw Dan disappear as he crouched down to greet the puppies and the soft cooing noises from such a tall guy melted Phil’s heart again. Dan also didn’t seem to care that he was getting fur all over his white shirt and pants and Phil couldn’t help but appreciate that. All of his clothes had been taken over by dog hairs a long time ago.

Phil let out the last few dogs into the big pen, two Pomeranians who had come in separately but they had taken quite a liking to each other and the Shiba Inu that he had been given a week ago.

Cookie and Lola rushed out to greet each other with tail wags and happy licks while Machi-Nu moved out cautiously.

Phil heard a gasp behind him and when he turned around he was watching an awestruck expression on Dan’s face.

“You have… you have a Shiba Inu here? Really?”

“Yeah,” Phil confirmed. “That’s Machi-Nu. He’s only been here for about a week. His old owner really wanted a meme dog, as he called it himself, but he wasn’t really prepared to put any serious training into his dog. He has a wide variety of bad habits and he’s poorly socialised but we’re working on it.”

Phil went over to fetch the different containers with food – prepped earlier and labelled with the dog’s names because they were all getting different ratios and some of them needed medicine or vitamins.

Phil put down the ten dog bowls, all pretty far away from each other, except for Rocco and Indie’s bowls, which were right next to each other like they preferred.

Dan watched as Phil told the dogs to “go wait” and the majority of the dogs went to sit by their bowl. Phil then handed two bowls with food in them to Dan. One had Rupert scrawled across the side and the other was wide and very flat.

“Hold these for me and give them to your hungry audience?” Phil asked Dan.

Dan almost forgot to answer because Phil was practically pushing the bowls into his hand, which meant that their hands were touching and Phil looked ridiculously pretty with his hair tousled from when he had taken off the flower crown.

“Sure,” Dan said and cast an eye down to Rupert who was watching him intensely with saliva already forming in his mouth. The two puppies were preoccupied with trying to play-bite each other’s ears.

“Cookie, Lola, you have your own bowls,” Phil told the Pomeranians. “And Skylar come over here.”

The white fluff was still not really listening until Phil snapped his fingertips and caught Skylar’s attention. Dan took note of how Machi-Nu lingered by his bowl but he didn’t properly approach it.

Dan was very impressed that Phil managed to pour food to each of the ten dogs without any of them leaving their spot. At first, Rudie tried to go over and attempt to push away Winston but Phil just let out a low grumbling sound that sounded like it came from the bottom of his stomach and the little black mix didn’t step any closer to Winston.

When everyone was fed and eating away, Phil finally looked back at Dan.

“You’re a dog wizard or something,” Dan stated, which caused Phil to laugh.

“No, I just have a lot of experience handling them. And they aren’t allowed to mess about with me. I know I hardly look intimidating in this get-up but trust me they know that I’m the pack leader and they respect it.”

Rupert was diligently eating in his bowl by Dan’s feet and the two puppies were crawling all over theirs, making a mess while they were eating.

“What’s the story with those two?” Dan asked and nodded towards the two Pomeranians.

“Cookie arrived about a month and he didn’t want to socialise with any of the other dogs during playtime and he seemed generally a bit down. Then a couple of weeks ago, Lola here arrived and since then he has been like a different dog. I have yet to put any of them up for adoption properly because I think I might need to find a home for them together. But like I said, it’s a bit of a big responsibility for someone to commit to not just one but two dogs.”

“Yeah,” Dan agreed and leaned against the fence of the playpen that Phil was still standing in the middle of while keeping a watchful eye on the dogs that finished so that they did not try to steal more food. “But I like that you think like that anyway. It says a lot about you. And they look cute together. It would be cruel to break up the love.”

“What about you, Dan?” Phil asked and looked away from the dogs for a beat to lock eyes with Dan for just a short second. “How long have you wanted a dog?”

“I…” Dan hesitated. He wasn’t entirely sure how to tell Phil that he had not come wandering in here to adopt a dog at all. He had just been seeking shelter from the rain. But as he thought about Phil’s question, he came to a realisation. “Since I moved out on my own, I suppose. It was odd coming home to an empty flat, you know? I was so used to having a dog in the house. There would always be someone home to greet me. But now there’s no one.”

Phil nodded in understanding. “I know what you mean. I mean not exactly as I didn’t have a dog growing up no matter how many times I begged my parents for one. So when I finally got my own place, I went out to look for a dog and I found Rupert. He was less than a year at the time and he had been through some bad times with his old owner and then the kennel where I found him. I started wondering if I couldn’t make a nicer home for the dogs, you know? So I eventually started this place?”

“This is your full time job? You’re Lester?”

“Phil Lester at your service,” Phil said with a glint in his eye and made a mock salute. “And yes, but the part of taking in stray dogs and finding them new homes isn’t all that I do here. During the day, I will watch people’s dogs. They drop them off here in the morning and I watch them throughout the day, take them on walks and all that. A lot of dogs don’t like being home alone, so some owners pay to have me look after their dogs. That pays significantly better than the small price for adopting a dog.”

Dan let out a chuckle and Phil looked him questioningly.

“Sorry, it’s just that I picture you walking around with like twenty dogs around you with their leads tied around your waist. It’s quite a comical image.”

“Not entirely wrong, but I wouldn’t take more than six dogs out at the time,” Phil said and started to collect the now empty food bowls. Machi-Nu let out a growl as Phil neared but Phil swiftly moved close and pushed two fingers onto his neck. Not hard, but enough that he moved away from the touch.

“No,” he said in a stern voice and the dog lowered his head. As soon as he conceded, Phil praised him.

“Do they all get along in there?” Dan asked.

“When I’m here, it’s fine. If I’m not, I only let a few of them that I know get along be outside together without supervision. How are the two new arrivals?” Phil asked.

“They have eaten about half the food and smeared the other half all around,” Dan said as he looked down. “And Rupert is sitting right next to their bowl with drool hanging out of his mouth and looking up at me like he’s being tortured.”

Dan thought it was quite impressive that he hadn’t tried to snatch up the leftovers form the puppies. Phil chuckled at Dan’s comment.

“Better hand me over the bowl and end the torture,” Phil said and when Dan handed over the two bowls, Dan made sure to make their hands touch again.

Phil didn’t sense that Dan did it on purpose but he did smile a little as he pulled away regardless.

“Do you want to come in and meet the dogs?” Phil asked.

Skylar was wagging her tail and blocking the entrance into the playpen, which prompted Dan’s brain to think that the only solution would be to swing his leg over the fence instead. He should have been tall enough that it wasn’t really a problem but he hadn’t accounted for his tight stage pants allowing him only limited flexibility.

He could feel that he would have the choice between stretching out further and risk his pants ripping or letting the momentum that was taking him, lead him to fall on his arse. He knew how pissed off people at set would be if he ruined the pants and he wasn’t particularly interested in showing Phil his underwear. At least not like this.

So he braced himself to what might be a bruise and he hoped to avoid landing on any dogs. But before his arse connected with the floor, Phil caught by the arm and stabilised him until he had both of his feet solidly planted inside of the playpen. He felt instantly flustered.

Phil hadn’t initially believed that Dan would just casually swing his legs over the fence rather than use the perfectly good entrance that Phil had shown him just minutes ago. But before he could put up any protests, he got a little distracted by the sight of Dan’s arse and legs in those tight pants. He was only human after all.

But when Dan had lost his balance and he was about to topple over, Phil’s brain kicked back into gear and he managed to grab a hold of him. He kept holding onto Dan’s arm until Skylar jumped up to put her paws on Dan and attempt to lick him.

Skylar might look like one gigantic fluff ball but the Samoyed dog was surprisingly heavy and she managed to knock Phil out of balance and thus he and Dan ended up on the floor together. Phil knew he should be telling Skylar off for jumping on people – it was one of her issues that they were still working on – but he was finding the whole thing too ridiculous.

The moment they were both lying on the floor of the playpen, Phil knew what would happen next. And correctly, it only took about a second before several dogs jumped them, fuelled by energy from their dinner and ready to play around.

Bertie managed to step on Phil’s throat, Rocco and Indie was trying to lick his face and Skylar accidentally kicked him in the stomach. Dan wasn’t better off when Lola stepped him in the eye, Indica laid down on top of his legs while wagging her tail wildly and Rudie was bringing over his favourite toy and dumping it on Dan.

The laughter bubble out of both of them as easy as breathing and that just made the dogs more excited. They were licking exposed skin, jumping around in joy and adding more toys to the pile of two boys and several dogs.

Dan felt something loosen in his chest, a tightness there that he had gotten so used to that he had stopped noticing it a bit. But he could feel how it felt different to laugh properly while surrounded by cute dogs and a sweet guy who was laughing his head off just as much.

Phil shouldn’t be condoning this behaviour but he just couldn’t help himself because the laughter was completely contagious and he allowed his foster dogs this moment of mischief because they were all just excited

Only when the laughter finally died down, did the boys manage to get out from under the dogs and off the floor. Phil was wiping away tears from the corner of his eyes and Dan was still clutching his sides.

After that, everything quiet down a bit more. The dogs were still excited and they wanted to play and use their energy, so that resulted in Dan and Phil, sitting back to back in the middle of the playpen, throwing different toys back and forth with the most energetic lot. Winston had gone back to his crate, as had Rocco and Indie. Cookie and Lola were laying half on top of each other, occasionally giving the other a little lick, off in the corner. Bertie, Indica, Skylar and Rudie were playing fetch with the boys excitedly. Machi-Nu was lying by himself in the corner.

The moment they had thrown one toy another dog would come by with a new one. These four didn’t seem to tire out very easily.

“Are they always like this?” Dan asked, picking up the little hotdog from Bertie’s mouth and throwing it to the edge of the pen.

“Yes. These four are energy balls. And I would usually have gone out with them for their walk by now. They’re probably wondering why I haven’t yet, but this playtime is occupying their mind for the time being.”

“Wait, what time is it?” Dan asked.

“I don’t know. I usually feed them at closing and then they’ll be ready for bed after the walk rotation around 9 PM,” Phil answered.

“You feed them at closing?” Dan asked in surprise but then he came to a realisation. “Wait? You’re _closed?_ ”

“Technically?” Phil said and he felt Dan move away from where they back were supporting each other. Rather than hold his own weight like a normal person would have done, Phil just let himself fall back until he was lying on the floor of the playpen again. It wasn’t the first time and it wouldn’t be the last. Maybe that was why every item of clothing always had dog hairs on it.

“Phil,” Dan said. “Why did you let me in if you’re closed? Why have you sat around with me on the floor for like half an hour if I’m fucking up your schedule?”

“Because I wanted to,” Phil answered simply and glanced up at Dan. How was he still pretty from below? No one was allowed to be this pretty from below. Sure, Phil could see his chin looking bigger but he was somehow still very pretty.

Dan leaned in closer, placing his weight a bit on the hand he put next to Phil’s head.

“Phil, you can’t just do that.”

“Of course, I can. I’ll tell you a little secret,” Phil said and Dan actually leaned in closer – bless his heart – and Phil felt his own heart raising. He almost felt bad. “I’m the owner.”

The tension was getting a little too intense, so Phil did something rather immature and blew air right into Dan’s face. He had looked dazed before but when he realised what Phil had done, he broke into a bright smile that he was fighting to keep under control.

“Dork,” Dan called him and flicked Phil’s forehead. He was clearly trying to sound pissed off but Phil couldn’t help but notice how Dan’s cheeks had gotten a little redder.

“Guilty as charged,” Phil said happily.

“Phil, do you want to hear something weird?”

“Always,” Phil said instantly.

“I didn’t come in here to adopt a dog. I was literally just escaping from the rain and I picked this door to escape from it by coincidence.”

“What?” Phil said, laughter bubbling up in his throat.

He wasn’t even remotely mad at Dan but he felt compelled to laugh at the fact that both of them were complete idiots. Phil for allowing Dan to come see dogs despite the place being closed and Dan for agreeing to it despite having no intention of adopting a dog.

“Yep,” Dan said and chuckled as well.

“But the stuff you said about coming home alone being lonely…”

“That part is true. And I have thought about getting a dog before. I have always loved them but it just never felt like the right time, you know?”

“There is no such thing as a ‘right’ time,” Phil said and Dan’s eyes focused on how he was doing the air quotes with practically his whole hand. It was adorable.

“I was thinking about that,” Dan said hesitantly. “But I’m busy. Rehearsals end next week and then we are going to be playing for a month. Waiting until after would be the sensible choice and then I might be ready.”

“Readiness is also a myth,” Phil said.

He was still lying on the floor. Bertie and Rudie had cuddled into his side. Indica had gone back to her crate and Skylar was standing next to Dan demanding pets. Phil hadn’t expected Dan to lie down next to him but that’s exactly what he did.

They were lying next to each other with their heads but with bodies and legs out in opposite directions. Skylar seemed to give up obtaining more of Dan’s attention and she went over and fetched a chew toy from the box.

“We can get existential if we need to, Phil,” Dan said and there was a teasing note to his voice.

“No,” Phil dismissed. He had a feeling conversations like that with Dan would lead nowhere productive. “I just mean that you will always find an excuse not to do something. There will always be a reason to put something off into the inevitability. But then you just keep putting it of and you never actually do it. If you want to do something, you should just do it.”

Dan let out a deep sigh. “Maybe you’re right.”

“Dan, out of all of the places you could have caught shelter from the rain, you ended up here. What are the odds of that? And it was ten minutes after closing and normally the door would have been locked but today it wasn’t. Doesn’t that mean something?”

“What? Like fate?”

“No,” Phil said and shoved Dan’s shoulder slightly. “Just that it’s a big coincidence, don’t you think?”

“Maybe,” Dan confessed softly. “But Phil, I don’t know anything about taking care of a dog entirely by myself. What if I fuck it up too? Like the old owner of Machi-Nu?”

“I could see that you took a shine to the shibe instantly,” Phil said smugly.

“It’s my favourite breed,” Dan said and looked over at Machi-Nu who seemed to sense that someone was looking at him because he opened his eyes and looked straight at Dan.

“Mine is a corgi,” Phil shared.

“Of course, it is,” Dan said with fondness in his voice.

“Don’t mock the corgis. They’re royal dogs and their stubby legs are adorable. Do you know that whenever a corgi is mixed with another breed, it basically makes a corgi version with short legs of that other breed? I have seen a lot of corgi mixes the past couple of years. They are the best.”

“I’m not arguing, Phil,” Dan said and held his hands up, but he was still looking at Machi-Nu.

“Try calling him,” Phil suggested. All the other dogs seemed preoccupied with something else and Phil could see how much Dan wanted to talk to the shiba inu.

Machi-Nu had been withholding from the moment he had arrived at Phil’s door but he was already doing much better after a week. Phil had full confidence that he could be a wonderful pet for someone.

Dan cast one slightly nervous in Phil’s direction. Phil smiled encouragingly. Dan turned his head to look at Machi-Nu, reached out his hand and called so softly that Phil almost couldn’t hear it.

Machi-Nu clearly did because his ears perked up slightly and hesitantly he got on his feet and walked over to Dan’s out stretched hand. Dan was entirely focused on the beautiful dog coming to him willingly but slowly while Phil was busy scanning to see if any of the other dogs had plans of jumping in at the outstretched hand of affection.

Dan smiled as Machi-Nu sniffed his fingers and then sat down next to his arm. He was within reach for Dan to stroke and he did so very carefully.

“ _Hello_ ,” he said in that soft voice of his again and Phil wondered how long he would be thinking of Dan like this, on the floor in the playpen looking so soft, whenever someone told him hello in the future.

Phil knew this moment was borrowed and he didn’t even know why he had been granted it but he was going to treasure it anyway. He had never quite met anyone like Dan before.

Dan felt his fingers glide through Machi-Nu’s fur and he was so happy that he had managed to call the shy dog over. When he turned around to face Phil again, his breath got caught in his throat because Phil’s face was closer than he had remembered and his eyes seemed to fucking shimmer and he was so beautiful.

When Phil had said that the place was closed and that he would normally be out on his evening walk now, Dan had thought that he should have gotten up and left but he didn’t want to. He daren’t even ask Phil if he wanted him to leave because he wasn’t ready to hear the answer.

He had been exhausted when he was running through the rain but right now it was like a new energy burned in him and he wasn’t ready to leave this Lester paradise with a dozen of dogs and a Phil.

“I think he likes you,” Phil said and nodded towards Machi-Nu.

“I like…” you, Dan didn’t say, “him too.”

“You know he isn’t up on the adoption website yet but I might be ready to make an exception for you, seeing as I’m already letting you be here after hours.”

“Phil?” Dan asked as he kept stroking Machi-Nu, who now inched closer. “Why did you?”

“Huh?”

“Why did you let me stay this long? I must have been here more than an hour already.”

“I don’t know,” Phil said and shrugged because he couldn’t tell Dan the real reason, or at least not all of it. “I guess I like your company more than I thought.”

“That’s it, huh?” Dan asked and Phil caught the edge of challenge in his voice.

“That and you look good in suspenders,” Phil threw in, suddenly feeling brave and it was well worth it to see Dan’s jaw drop. He didn’t want Dan to question him about it, so he changed the subject. “Why didn’t you just tell me that you needed to hide out from the rain for a few minutes? I wouldn’t have sent you away.”

Now it was Dan’s turn to shrug. “Maybe I can appreciate a pretty guy in a flower crown,” Dan said and he clearly tried to sound nonchalant but the words still made Phil blush.

Were they really flirting? Phil’s heart fluttered and Dan found it hard to breathe normally. It felt differently than when they had first met out front. They had spent an hour talking and getting comfortable in each other’s company.

“I thought you didn’t like sunflowers?”

“I don’t,” Dan confirmed. “But like I said, they look pretty on you.”

“Dan?”

“Yes, Phil?”

“I think you could be a good owner for Machi-Nu, if you want to be,” Phil said and glanced over at the two of them and how the shiba inu had inched closer and closer to Dan and was now lying down right beside him. “Ever since I got him, I wondered what kind of person could be good to him. It would have to be someone with a certain energy, you know? Because he’s a very sensitive dog.”

“Then I might not be your best bet, actually,” Dan said and sounded sad. “I… I get sad sometimes.”

“No, Dan, I didn’t mean like that,” Phil rushed to explain, even if his heart clenched for Dan at his admission. “Dogs are actually great for combating sadness. I just mean that you have to find an owner who can be on the same wavelength as the dog and Machi-Nu is different from any dog I’ve ever had in my care.”

“I think I would like to adopt him, Phil,” Dan confessed in a hushed voice. “I don’t think I realised just how much I miss companionship in my life until I walked in here. But I do have, uh, one condition if you don’t mind?”

Phil frowned in confusion but Dan’s face was still open and vulnerable. “What’s that?”

“You help me out with him? You said he wasn’t quite up for adoption yet, so I presume that means that you wanted to work with him a bit more. And it’s important for him to socialise too, right? He would have plenty of opportunity for that if he could come here.”

“You want me to dogsit him?” Phil asked. “Sure, I have done that for other owners before.”

Dan cleared his throat and he looked a shade pinker than usual. “No, I meant that I could come here with him. Take him on a walk with you and your dogs, maybe. You could give me dog training tips, or something you know?”

Phil got up from where he had been lying on his back and sat cross-legged across from Dan, who got up and matched Phil’s position. Rudie and Bertie protested a little at being deprived of their pillow while Machi-Nu remained lying next to Dan quietly but with his ears following Dan’s movements.

“Dog training tips?” Phil asked and he knew he probably had a shit-eating grin on his face. He was pretty sure he had read the hidden implication behind Dan’s words and he was feeling all sort of butterflies. “That’s the best you could do?”

Dan sputtered a little and tried to look offended but it mostly came across as slight embarrassment. Phil had just bee teasing, so he reached out to catch Dan’s hands in his own before he got a crazy idea like getting up and leaving. Phil couldn’t have that.

“I just want to know how to be a good dog owner, Phil.”

“I can recommend several good training programmes for you, if that’s all that you’re after. It doesn’t have to be me.”

Dan had definitely caught onto Phil’s teasing by now, if the way his mouth was hanging open in surprise was any indication.

“You’re unbelievable,” Dan said and let out a huff of frustration. “I would like dog training tips from _you,_ Phil.”

“Oh?”

“Do you really need to call me out like that?” Dan asked and he looked an odd cross between being embarrassed and fond.

“Yes,” Phil said and reached up to trace his thumb over Dan’s cheek. “I do because you’re adorable.”

“Phil, I would like you see you again,” Dan said bluntly.

Phil’s heart might have skipped a beat. Dan’s certainly did when he saw the wide smile spread on Phil’s lips.

“I would like to see you again too, Dan,” Phil said and leaned in a little closer. “And I will be willing to do that regardless of whether you adopt a dog or not. You cannot do it on a whim, you hear me?”

Dan let out a hearty laugh and leaned closer to Phil and put both hands on his shoulder.

“I’m serious about the adoption, either way, Phil,” Dan said.

“Good because I could never kiss an irresponsible dog owner,” Phil said.

Dan’s eyes flashed in surprise at Phil’s words before they both moved forward to meet each other in a tender and short kiss. Dan blinked rapidly when they both pulled back and he couldn’t believe that it had just happened.

“I did not see my day going like this,” Dan muttered under his breath.

“What you didn’t know you’d be adopting a dog today?”

“No, and I didn’t know I would meet and kiss someone like you either, Phil.”

“Then we’re in the same boat because I had no idea someone as special as you would be strolling through my door.”

“I wasn’t exactly strolling, I was running and soaking wet,” Dan corrected and his hands on Phil’s shoulders moved up to the back of his neck.

“Regardless,” Phil said and put his hands on Dan’s waist, “I was happy that you did choose my place to take shelter.”

Their touches were light and cautious. They were still essentially strangers but none of them regretted the light kiss with a promise of more in the future.

Around them, several of the dogs were beginning to get a little restless and they could both feel several begging eyes on them.

“I think they want you to take them on their walk,” Dan said with a smile but he made no motion to release Phil from his hold.

“Join me?” Phil asked.

“A walk?” Dan said with a smirk on his lips. “Old fashioned.”

“ _Dan_.”

“I’d love to. We just have to do one more thing first.”

“Oh?” Phil asked, frustration instantly melting off him when he saw the glint in Dan’s eye and it made room for more light-hearted teasing. “And what’s that?”

“One more kiss? Just, you know, to prove to myself that this is in fact not my tired brain making you and this dog heaven up,” Dan said. “Oh and I will need your phone number too.”

“Such demands,” Phil said and he was smirking as he was leaning in. “What if we make this walk our first unofficial date and then we can have an official one later?” Phil proposed.

Dan’s heart sped up at the invite. The both smiled brightly at each other and neither of them had any plan of stopping soon.

“Sounds like a plan,” Dan said and their lips met in their second kiss. “As long as you don’t kiss all the people you help adopt dogs?”

“I can safely say that this is a first,” Phil said against Dan’s lips.

“Good,” Dan replied with the hugest grin.

They had only known each other for an hour. One kiss and a walk did not mean love yet. But the affection was rapidly forming between them. The way that they were constantly aware of each other, even in a room full of adorable dogs. It was young infatuation and the heart and love eyes were completely understandable.

In the following weeks, when people in the neighbourhood would see Dan join Phil on the daily walks with the dogs and the cast members at the theatre would see Phil stop by with lunch for Dan or a brief puppy pause everyone’s expressional softened a little.

“I think they have fallen in love,” one would whisper to another.

They had.

All because a cloudburst had caused Daniel Howell to seek shelter for the rain and he had unwillingly run right into the shelter of Philip Lester. And they would continue to be a shelter for each other every single day from that first day they met.

And their joint collection of dogs eventually expanded past Rupert and Machi-Nu obviously. Dogs continued to be a part of their lives, just like they became a permanent part in each other’s lives after that rainy evening.

 

**Author's Note:**

> [Reblog on tumblr](http://secretlywritingstories.tumblr.com/post/176562359906/a-different-first-meeting-with-dogs-phan-one)
> 
> This got way too long but it was so fun to write all the dogs. These two dorks are so adorable and I can just imagine them being jumped by a pile of puppies. Also, Dan's soft "hello" whenever he speaks to dogs literally melts my heart a little. I hope you liked this one shot. And did you noticed the outfits from the video being included too? I have the dog calendar hanging on the side of my fridge at home and I get in such a good mood whenever I look at it.
> 
> I have a plan to post a something every day in August 2018. At least ten of the days will be with Dan and Phil, so many check out my profile here or my tumblrs if you liked this? [@secretlywritingstories](http://secretlywritingstories.tumblr.com) & [@natigail](http://natigail.tumblr.com). Anyway, I hope you have a lovely day/night and feedback is highly appreciated.


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